Former Anaheim Ducks Head Coach Greg Cronin Reveals Where He'd Like To Work Next
Photo credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images
In a recent interview, Greg Cronin, who was fired by the Anaheim Ducks, revealed in which NHL organization he'd like to pursue his career.
The Anaheim Ducks organization decided to fire their head coach Greg Cronin less than two weeks ago, following two seasons spent at the bottom of the rankings.
An official press release was shared by the team on NHL.com:
Greg Cronin was fired as coach of the Anaheim Ducks on Saturday.
No replacement was named.
Cronin was in his second season with the Ducks, replacing Dallas Eakins on June 4, 2023.
The Ducks (35-37-10) failed to qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the seventh consecutive season. They were sixth in the Pacific Division and finished 16 points behind the St. Louis Blues for the second wild card from the Western Conference.
Anaheim was eliminated when it lost 4-1 to the Calgary Flames on April 3.
"Today was a very tough day for this to happen,» Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek said Saturday, «and I think Greg was responsible, in many ways, for the improvement of this team, when we look at accountability, you look at relevance. He brought this organization back, laying a solid foundation for all our young players and even our veterans, which has been very important."
Anaheim finished with 80 points this season, a 21-point improvement from 2023-24.
"In the end, it really wasn't about wins and losses,» Verbeek said. «I think when I talked about the concerns, some of those were things that, in my opinion, could not be overcome with whatever measuring stick you wanted to apply to it. So, with that, and with my experience as a player and being a manager, I thought at this time it was the right time to make the change and for our team to move forward."
Verbeek said he «didn't look at» Anaheim's power play (11.8 percent; 32nd in the NHL this season) and penalty kill (74.2 percent; 29th) as factors in the decision to fire Cronin, and that there were other reasons he shared with the coach that he wanted to remain private.
As for Cronin's reaction to getting the news, Verbeek said, "I would say he was completely shocked, which is probably normal from his perspective. That's why this was very difficult and probably didn't make a lot of sense to him. Maybe at some point I'll be able to dive in with him deeper than in some of the conversations we had today."
No replacement was named.
Cronin was in his second season with the Ducks, replacing Dallas Eakins on June 4, 2023.
The Ducks (35-37-10) failed to qualify for the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the seventh consecutive season. They were sixth in the Pacific Division and finished 16 points behind the St. Louis Blues for the second wild card from the Western Conference.
Anaheim was eliminated when it lost 4-1 to the Calgary Flames on April 3.
"Today was a very tough day for this to happen,» Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek said Saturday, «and I think Greg was responsible, in many ways, for the improvement of this team, when we look at accountability, you look at relevance. He brought this organization back, laying a solid foundation for all our young players and even our veterans, which has been very important."
Anaheim finished with 80 points this season, a 21-point improvement from 2023-24.
"In the end, it really wasn't about wins and losses,» Verbeek said. «I think when I talked about the concerns, some of those were things that, in my opinion, could not be overcome with whatever measuring stick you wanted to apply to it. So, with that, and with my experience as a player and being a manager, I thought at this time it was the right time to make the change and for our team to move forward."
Verbeek said he «didn't look at» Anaheim's power play (11.8 percent; 32nd in the NHL this season) and penalty kill (74.2 percent; 29th) as factors in the decision to fire Cronin, and that there were other reasons he shared with the coach that he wanted to remain private.
As for Cronin's reaction to getting the news, Verbeek said, "I would say he was completely shocked, which is probably normal from his perspective. That's why this was very difficult and probably didn't make a lot of sense to him. Maybe at some point I'll be able to dive in with him deeper than in some of the conversations we had today."
With the Seattle Kraken, New York Rangers, and Pittsburgh Penguins all looking for a new head coach, Cronin isn't worried about his future in the League.
He even revealed his preferred destination in a recent interview.
Indeed, he stated that he will throw his name in the hat for teams looking for a new coach, but added that he'd love to work for the Boston Bruins:
"Hey, I'm a coach, right? All these openings, I'll throw my hat in and see what comes back. I mean, heck, I'd be doing handsprings and jumping over rainbows if I got the Bruins' job. I'm a Boston guy, and for a Boston guy, that's hitting the lottery times 10!"
With Mike Sullivan, Peter Laviolette, Cronin, and all the other talented candidates available, it'll be interesting to see who gets hired, and by which team.
Stay tuned for all the latest details on the matter.
| POLL | ||
AVRIL 28 | 67 ANSWERS Former Anaheim Ducks Head Coach Greg Cronin Reveals Where He'd Like To Work Next Do you think Greg Cronin will find another job in the NHL before next season? | ||
| Yes | 25 | 37.3 % |
| No | 42 | 62.7 % |
| List of polls | ||
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